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derivative filename/jpeg
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363-07751 to 363-07756.pdf
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Digital Object Identifier
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363-07751 to 363-07756
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Title
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Article about the tactics of Việt Cộng surrounding Saigon
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Description
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Original title: "Noose", Keever's title: "Communists plan Mao-plus-Lenin tactis to seize Saigon later", article about the tactics of Việt Cộng fighters who had surrounded Saigon, and their use of both Mao Tse-Tung and Lenin's tactics, for the New York Herald Tribune
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AI Usage Disclosure
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Draft transcripts were automatically generated via Google Document AI and are currently under review. Please report significant errors to Archives & Special Collections at archives@unl.edu.
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Transcript
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- Page 1
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Deepe
Noose--page 1
January 18, 1966
SAIGON The Red Noose--a Communist stranglehold--
is tightening around this nervous capital city.
INTELLIGENCE
hase sources indicate that the Viet Cong Communists
plan to utilize what they described as the "tactics of
Mao Tse-Tung plus those of Lenin" in their long-range
battle plan for Saigon. This plan combines Mao Tse-Tung's
tactics of using armed guerrillas to seize the villages
and then to encircle Saigon plus the street-fighting and
people's uprising within the inter-ring of Saigon city,
similiar to the way in which the Communists seized power
in the 1917 revolution in Russia.
Military intelligence sources also indicate that
the equivalent of a battalion of Viet Cong--organized into
2 murder teams sabotage commando units--
suicide squads,
have already penetrated within the city limits of Saigon,
ready to strike when the Communist command orders are
received.
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- Page 2
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Deepe
noose--page
2
Outside of Saigon, the Viet Cong have established
a double ring of regular forces, organized under two
regimental co-ordinating commands. The one regiment, Called
the "Capital Regiment Headquarters", comprised of three
regular "light" battalions, is known to operate close to
Saigon within Gia Dinh province, The second regiment,
comprised of four regular "light" battalions, oper ate in
a larger circle surrounding the area of responsibility of the
Capital Regimental Headquarter an eighth Battalion is
Beira,
currently under training and will be the regiment up
fouR - BATTAL. O
to full strength.
In short, the Viet Cong have Saigon doubly encircled
with two separate rings of troops these intelligence sources
report the Communists late last year established the two
regimental coordinating commands for Saigon--Cholon--Gia Dinh.
On December 13, 1965, at a special meeting, Viet Cong
leaders for the anti capital region established and named
one of the commands the "Capital Regiment Headquarters.
The name of the second regiment is currently unknown,
The Capital Regiment
according to intelligence sources.
Headquarters has under it's control the atta only three
"light" battalions: the 3rd Battalion situated northeast
the 6th
of Saigon, the 4th Battalion Southeast of Saigon,
Battalion southeast of Saigon. The 5th Battalion is under
training--to be completed next month--and is to be assigned
northwest of Saigon, according to military intelligence
sources.
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- Page 3
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Deepe
noose--page 3
These seven "light" battalions controlled by the two
regimental headquarters each have for four companies of
roughly 150 men per company, or roughly 600 men per
battalion--which is numerically stronger than a Vietnamese
government regular Army battalion.
These seven Viet Cong "light" battalions are
considered to be hard-core regulars, recruited in their
local villages and provinces. They operate in addition
to the local village and regional guerrillas--part-time
farmers and part-time fighters.
During a seven-day, 8,000-man operation from
Jan. 8-15, American paratroopers and Australian troops
cracked the main base area of the Viet Cong Saigon-Cholon-
Gia Dinh Committee, killing 151,
off tons of documents and weapons,
in a complex honeycomb of tunnels,
and underground defenses.
capturing 91, carrying
which were hidden
cement blockhouses
While the allied forces
disrupted the headquarters, the Viet Cong are expesited
to move back into the infamous Ho Bo woods area at
a later time.
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Deepe
Noose--page
44
This week the noose around Saigon visibly grew
tighter when, within a 20 hour period, in the doughnut
province of. Gia Dinh, which surrounds Saigon, an unknown
number of Viet Cong placed small arms fire on a village
ten miles southwest of Saigon (jan. 16th) six hours later
a Viet Cong company six miles southwest of Saigon mortared
a Vietnamese airborne battalion which was stationed to
protect one of the largest military oil depots and American
The
ammunition unloading bases in the capital area.
next day the Viet Cong simultaneously mortared and attacked
the Thu Duc Infantry and Armored School,
which is situated
between Saigon and a division-plus of American combat forces
in the Bien Hoa airbase area, only twelve minutes drive
from Saigon.
During this last attack,
TOSSED
Saigon generals,
then
businessmen and peons aged in their beds as first the
soft patter of Viet Cong machine gun fire was heard,
whomp-ing reaction of the instant artillery--and seconds
later the sharp whistle of American jets rushing to the
battle area.
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Deepe
noose--page 5
The Capital Military Region comprises Saigon
and it's Chinese twin-city of Cholon (total pop. 1,641,000)
MILES,
covering
30
square miles, plus Gia Dinh province
covering 77 square miles. American military commanders
have classified Gia Dinh province as "pacified" but the
number of Viet Cong armed attacks have steadily been rising
within the province; district headquarters barely out of
site of the neon lights of Saigon city are consistently
mortared. Almost nightly now, Saigon diners from rooftop
restaurants can witness flaredrops and jetstrafing rungs.
"Almost every night we drop flares right at the
end of the big runway, one American airman at Saigon's
Tan Son Nhut airport explained. "We've got battalions of
Viet Cong right around this airbase.
We have firefights
three times a week at the bomb dump right on the edge of
the runway.
he has to.
Nobody goes down by that bomb dump unless
American crew chiefs have to guard all-night
their individual aircraft parked down near there--but
they know they're just sitting ducks." LAmerican pilots
often land at night at Tan Son Nhut without any lights
on the plane because they feel they are less conspicuous
targets for the Viet Cong snipers at the end of the
runway.
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Deepe
noose--page 6
Military intelligence sources indicate the Viet Cong
commander of the Saigon area uses the alias of Muoi Tri--
Spirit No. 10. Formerly a member of the gangster-pirate
Binh Xuyên group, he was captured by the French during
the Indo-China War, then was sent to North Vietnam when
they country was divided by the 1954 Geneva Agreements.
He has since re-infiltrated to the Saigon area.
These sources indicate that the Viet Cong specialist
on commando raid attacks within Saigon is named Cao Pha--
which means Superman--who fought in North Vietnam during
the French Indo-China War. The Viet Cong specialist for
sabotage is named Hai Den--an alias meaning Black No. 2.
The Saigon murder teams operate under the command
of La Van Liem a Chinese name. This specialist in
pistol assassinations gained fame in Saigon for killing
the French official in charge of security throughout
He too was sent
Indo-China during the Indo-China War.
to North Vietnam after the 1954 Geneva Agreements,
has since resinfiltrated into the Saigon area.
Vietnamese government has recently put a one million
piastre (US $10,000) price on his head.
The
but
The Viet Cong
political advisor to the Saigon area operates under the
alias of Chin Dung (Courage No. 9).
More American and foreign civilians have been killed in
Saigon by sabotage and terrorism than in all other parts of Vietnam
combined, according to reliable sources.
-30-
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Date
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1966, Jan. 22
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Subject
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Vietnam War, 1961-1975; Mặt trận dân tộc giải phóng miền nam Việt Nam; Tactics; Strategy; Mao, Zedong, 1893-1976; Lenin, Vladimir Il?ich, 1870-1924; Vietnam (Democratic Republic). Quân đội
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Location
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Saigon, South Vietnam
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Coordinates
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10.8231; 106.6311
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Size
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20 x 26 cm
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Container
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B188, F3
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Format
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dispatches
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Collection Number
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MS 363
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Collection Title
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Beverly Deepe Keever, Journalism Papers
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Creator
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Keever, Beverly Deepe
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Collector
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Keever, Beverly Deepe
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Copyright Information
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These images are for educational use only. To inquire about usage or publication, please contact Archives & Special Collections.
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Publisher
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Archives & Special Collections, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries
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Language
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English
